Interior designer, 38, hanged herself after becoming hooked on ketamine when her relationship broke up, inquest hears
Emma Neame took the powerful tranquiliser and may have been hallucinating when she ended her life in the garden of her flat.
She had been a talented interior designer for several businesses and then set up her own company, Emma Neame Interiors, in 2021.
However a split with the father of her twins, mounting financial pressure and bulimia meant she had 'difficulty coping with the pressures of everyday life.'
South London Coroner's Court in Croydon heard how Ms Neame, 38, had struggled with her mental health from the age of 17, with bouts of depression and anxiety. She had also tried to end her life twice before, the inquest heard.
However at the end of 2022 she upped her intake of recreational drugs including ketamine, which lost her friends and left her feeling isolated.
In April 2023 she and partner Simon Mortlock, father to twins born in 2012, separated and she moved to a flat in Thornton Heath, south London, which she found difficult.
Assistant coroner Laura Stephenson read from statements from family members including one from Miss Neame's mum Marina Neame saying: 'She had difficulty with finances and she had reluctantly moved to Thornton Heath.
'She was co-parenting and felt lonely at times.
'I was aware that Emma took recreational drugs and as of the end of 2022 she had been using drugs more.
'She had explained that she had given up on her relationship with her former partner and she was using drugs more to deal with her loneliness and depression, and her relationship had broken down with friends.
'She wanted to return home to Kent but it was difficult because of the situation with her children.'
Miss Neame attended Simon Langton Girls' Grammar School in Canterbury and trained in interior design at Kensington and Chelsea College.
She had been suffering from bulimia for three years and had started attending an eating disorders clinic, the court heard.
She took herself to a drug walk in clinic to try and get help for her substance abuse problems.
Miss Neame then visited her mother in France in February 2024 and she said she felt things were looking up.
Her mother said: 'When we had seen her in France she left positive and grateful.
'She was a successful interior designer and she was extremely proud of her children, a loving mother.
'She was an intelligent, beautiful young woman who we were very proud of.'
On March 12, 2024, the pair spoke on the phone and Miss Neame said she was feeling unwell with a sore throat and temperature.
'She was looking forward to starting her latest design project,' she added.
Miss Neame's maternal grandmother also gave a statement to the court.
Mary Towndrow said: 'She suffered from anxiety and bulimia.
'She had recreationally used drugs which had developed into a ketamine reliance or addiction.
'She had high levels of stress and she had difficulty coping with the pressures of daily life.'
Miss Neame had stayed with her the week before she died.
Ms Towndrow added: 'Her physical health was deteriorating. She had problems with her bladder and bowel which were causing her pain.
'Her interior design business was running into difficulty in terms of debt. She was overwhelmed.'
Her former partner, Simon Mortlock, said he had known Miss Neame for 18 years.
He said he had spoken to her by phone with the last call at around 5pm on March 12, 2024.
The following morning he tried to reach her by phone but there was no answer, so he went to her home at about midday.
The door was open and he saw drugs on the side of the kitchen counter, but couldn't see Miss Neame.
He thought she may have gone to A&E so went to local hospitals but they had no record of her.
When he returned to the property he saw Miss Neame having hung herself in the garden.
He attempted CPR but she was already dead.
His statement said: 'She appeared to be taking more recreational drugs.
'She had become isolated and it appeared to be linked to her drug use.
'I did not see this coming at the time.'
The court heard how Miss Neame had made two previous attempts on her life in 2008 or 2009 and January 2023, but both were thought to be cries for help.
During the most recent in January 2023 she took alcohol, cocaine and then an overdose, but felt immediately regretful and called an ambulance, with a friend saying: 'She really scared herself.'
However she had been referred to South London and Maudsley mental health services and was engaging with them, having had a consultation in May 2023.
A toxicology report found she had drunk alcohol and taken ketamine and cocaine prior to her death.
She also had Alprazolam, more commonly known as Xanax, in her system, which is prescribed to treat anxiety.
Ketamine has been used to treat depression and anxiety but it is not a licensed treatment the effects of taking it long term are unknown.
Some of those who have undergone managed ketamine treatment have suffered worsening depression and suicidal thoughts and it is also known to cause bladder damage in those who take it illegally.
Common symptoms are lower abdominal pain, pain passing urine, and needing to pass urine more often.
Summing up, assistant coroner Ms Stephenson recorded a narrative verdict.
She said she wasn't confident recording a verdict of suicide because Miss Neame's intentions weren't clear - there was no note and after previous overdoses she had immediately regretted her actions.
She also said ketamine could have hallucinogenic effects with others having been accidentally strangled or suspended after having taken the drug.
She said: 'She was a creative person, a talented interior designer and it has been a privilege to read these statements.
'Emma did have a difficult time with substance use, including ketamine and cocaine.
'Emma had shared that she had been taking ketamine and also using Xanax to cope with her issues, in particular her loneliness at that time, but her mother said she left feeling more positive about her future and she was speaking to a drug team.
'I find it is likely that the substances I have referred to, particularly ketamine, would have significantly impaired her thinking and I'm not satisfied Emma wanted to take her own life at that time.
'She died by suspension at a time when she was experiencing the effects of ketamine and cocaine.'
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